What am I doing here? Forgetting important things and keeping notes

I had a really good idea for the blog this month. It came to me about a week and a half ago while I was driving. It was sunny and I remember thinking that’s a great idea for the April blog. I’ll write it down as soon as I get home and then I can write it when I get the chance. I’ll be on schedule this month! So here we are on the last day of the month and that idea vanished in the ether of good intentions.

Ideas, for me, have often come at odd moments, mostly when my body is occupied but my brain is free to ramble. Most of them are worth looking at, thinking about and letting go. But every now and then an idea becomes like a mosquito in a dark room. It just won’t go away and every time you look away, it dive bombs your head. Those ideas tend to linger and itch until I write them down.

Some people write a book from start to finish. Then they edit it or submit it and move on to their next project. I tend to have multiple projects on the go in various forms. That means multiple characters are living in my head at the same time. They all have personalities too so it can get a bit overwhelming. Add in the fact that I’m a little absent minded (partly being an artist and partly personality) and things can easily get out of control. There are times when I’m sitting, wondering how a character will react and how long she’s been experiencing something. There’s nothing akin to being knocked out of your flow by not being able to remember how long something has been going on or what exactly your character experienced as a child and when. Sometimes it almost brings me to tears.

So started taking notes. They were just occasional points, things I wanted to remember to include as I progressed with the book. But then they started changing. I was beginning to plot my book as I wrote it, keeping track of the backgrounds and where this information needs to be leaked out to the reader. How to do that without overwhelming them. Like a nectar of the gods that you want people to appreciate, not be knocked down by. I’ve been writing seriously for almost 25 years and I plan to go on until I die. I’m sure that my ways of writing and notes will change with time. But the importance of the story is paramount and it’s why I do all the background work. So that I know the story I bring to you will be the best I am capable of at this time. I know what comes next and I’m excited as a child with a secret to share it with you.